Whether you’re calling potential client leads or they’re calling you, effective insurance voicemails are essential to converting calls into sales. A successful voicemail campaign takes a bit of forethought to get the results you want.
Most of us these days are so busy that our phone calls go straight to voicemail. A workday typically means you’re busy with clients from the moment you go into the office. You could be losing out on new clients when you miss a call.
According to Hubspot, 80% of all sales calls go directly to voicemail. For this reason, you’ll want to leave the most compelling voicemail message that speaks directly to prospective clients, and you should do so as concisely as possible. If you’re an insurance broker, you’ll also want to train your agents how to accomplish this vitally important strategy to ensure optimal engagement with potential clients.
The Importance of a Professional Yet Friendly Voicemail
Most of us are inundated with sales calls every day, whether on our personal phones or business lines. We often ignore them, erase them from our voicemail, or don’t call back. Why? Because every call sounds like the one before and fails to pique our interest.
Insurance is a different ballgame. Your prospective clients need insurance to run their businesses, so they’re likely already thinking about buying business insurance.
The first impression your contacts will likely have of your insurance business could very well come from your voicemail messaging. Your insurance voicemails should have a friendly yet professional tone. Potential leads will be subconsciously comparing your voicemails to that of other insurance professionals. If you sound like a robot with no personality, chances are your voicemail will be deleted along with all the others.
Here are some things you can do to impress clients right from the get-go:
Cater to the strengths of your personality.
Let’s face it — most of the voicemails we receive are monotonous and boring. Even though a prospective client needs insurance, it can be a hard sell unless you win them over.
Your personality has its strengths and is uniquely yours. So harness it and make it come through in the voicemails for your insurance business.
Imagine your client is right there in front of you. Even though they can’t see you in a voicemail, your client picks up on things. If you’re having a bad or stressful day, the client will likely detect this in the call.
Make sure the tone of your voice is optimistic, positive, and respectful. You might even consider smiling during the voicemail. Your friendliness and positivity will transfer to the call, and the voicemail will sound more inviting to the person on the other end of the call.
Make sure the voicemail is clear, targeted, and concise.
The best insurance agents are quite adept in selling their message, particularly when face-to-face with a client. But, it can be more challenging to engage with a client at the voicemail level because it lacks a human touch. Not only is it more impersonal, but you don’t have as much time to get your message across.
Nonetheless, your client’s time is important, and so is yours. So, you’ll want to create an effective voicemail in the shortest time possible, usually no more than 30 to 40 seconds long. Many clients will hang up after half a minute.
Remember how busy your client’s industry is. They may be out in the field working all day and return calls only once or twice a day. Chances are, they’re dealing with multiple voicemails to return each day, and they’re more likely to listen to your entire message if it’s brief.
Still, you don’t just want to leave a name and number. After all, you want the client to feel like they’ve come to the right place.
When delivering your voice mail, make sure that your voice sounds clear by ensuring that there’s no background noise.
Your ultimate goal is for them to be interested enough to make contact with you. You want to create a desire for a potential client to learn more about what you can offer them so that they ultimately get their coverage from your insurance company.
Targeting the Right Client in Insurance Voicemails
It can be confusing for a client trying to determine the types of insurance a particular agent can sell. For instance, an insurance agent specializing in tree service insurance is not likely to sell house insurance and vice versa.
You’ll want your voicemail to target your ideal client. But before you can do that, you must first define who those clients are. Fall back to the products and services you sell and seek to understand the current landscape of the type of insurance you’re selling. Do you serve only local clients, or can you expand those offerings to a broader audience on the Internet?
In the end, your voicemail should target the type of business that needs the kind of insurance your agency offers. Then, come up with a short voicemail that addresses your target client while also touching on the value of what you can bring to their business.
Putting it All Together to Create an Effective Insurance Voicemail
A voicemail for incoming calls might sound like this: “Hi, this is Keith from James Insurance Company, serving landscapers throughout the great state of Texas. Thanks for reaching out. Please leave a message, along with your phone number or email address, and I’ll respond promptly and address any questions you may have.”
Notice how the client was given more than one way to respond? Some clients prefer one mode of communication over another. Many clients would prefer to text or email over a phone call. When you’re flexible and consider their preferences, it shows the client that you’re willing to go the extra mile.
The above voicemail example also has a friendly, gracious, and respectful tone that clients appreciate. It’s also short and concise and only runs about twenty seconds.
An outgoing voicemail, or one where you’re proactively targeting potential clients, might be worded slightly differently.
An example would be something like the following: “Good morning, Garrett. This is Keith from James Landscaping Insurance Company at xxx-xxx-xxxx. As a landscaper, I’m sure you understand the importance of adequate insurance to protect your business. I have some great information to share with you about meeting the needs of your landscaping company. Again, feel free to reach back out to me at your convenience at xxx-xxx-xxxx. You can also text if it works better for you. Thanks.”
You’ll probably want to make an outgoing voicemail a little longer while still adhering to the 30 to 40-second rule. You also want to help the client understand why they might consider calling you back and repeat your phone number towards the end of the message in case they missed it the first time.
The voicemails above show an intent to protect the prospective client’s business interests while offering a solution.
Be Specific Whenever Possible in Voicemails
For instance, if a friend refers you to a prospective client, utilize that information to get your foot in the door. Perhaps you’ve learned about a new logging business. Mention that you realize they’re new to the business and are concerned about the client having adequate coverage to protect their interests.
Address the client by their first name, whenever possible, and appeal to them personally. Forming a personal connection offers a key advantage in building trust with a potential client.
Another way to be specific is through geographical interests. Let’s say your target client’s business is in an area prone to hurricanes. You might want to mention in the voicemail that with hurricane season approaching, you wanted to be sure that the business has adequate coverage for any eventuality.
The more you can convey that you understand a prospective client’s business and its needs, the more likely it will get the client thinking about their company’s insurance needs. And since you’re the one who got them thinking, they’re more likely to remember you and do business with you.
Offer the Contact an Incentive in Your Insurance Voicemails
Let’s face it. The bottom line for many business owners all comes down to money and budgeting matters. If you’re asking a business to spend more money, an incentive can only help.
While most businesses realize the need for a good insurance policy, very few think about every eventuality.
Some business owners purchase a basic business insurance policy without realizing how comprehensive the scope of coverage can be. And, others put it off altogether and just want to do things at their own pace. In the end, many are underinsured.
Provide a potential client a reason for them to buy coverage now. Gently instill an urgency while also giving a timeframe, like a day or two. Incentivize them by letting them know that you can bundle and offer comprehensive coverage at a reduced price if they get back to you quickly.
The voicemail script might read, “Hey John. This is Keith with James Landscaping Insurance. I just wanted to tell you about our landscaping insurance bundle going on over the next 48 hours. I can give you a great deal on comprehensive landscaping coverage to ensure that your business is fully protected at all levels. Give me a call back in the next day or so at xxx-xxx-xxxx. I look forward to talking it over with you.”
Businesses want to cut corners and save money whenever possible. Give them a reason to take action now.
The Takeaway
You don’t want your insurance voicemails to go unnoticed along with the rest of them. Deliver a targeted and concise message to your contacts and show that you respect their time while also offering a level of concern for their needs. This will help forge a level of trust that encourages the client to communicate back to you.
If you want to learn more about creating effective voicemails, get in touch with Conventus today, and we’ll be glad to help.
